Prince of Penzance Officially Retired by Darren Weir

Prince of Penzance, the shock 100 – 1 winner of the 2015 Melbourne Cup, will not be back, having officially entered retirement at the ripe old age of seven.

According to the gelding’s trainer, Daren Weir, the Prince is, “officially retired.”

A left off-fore leg fracture in October of last year in the Group 2 Herbert Power Stakes was all the impetus needed to call time on him, less than a month ahead of when he would have taken to Flemington to defend his Melbourne Cup title.

No one ever suggested that Prince of Penzance could be rehabilitated to race again, but sentimental hopes for a Melbourne Cup winner could not be put aside until it was made official. He will be living the life of the hero on one of Weir’s farms in Victoria, as he has no value at stud.

The relatively unsung Prince had a more than respectable career, winning seven races at distances ranging from 1300 to 3200 metres, and he placed nine times from his 29 starts, bringing in almost $4.5 million in prizemoney.

After his Melbourne Cup win, he never finished above second, and prior to winning the biggest race in Australia, his only other Group victory was the Group 2 Moonee Valley Cup back in October of 2014.